When the first laptops packing Max-Q launched last month, most of the initial options were limited to bigger gaming laptop brands with set hardware configurations. At Newegg, you can find two MSI laptops, a Gigabyte Aorous model, and the absolutely stunning Asus ROG Zephyrus. Which makes sense! Max-Q achieves its goal of cramming heavy-duty graphics into (relatively) thin and light laptops by carefully tuning both hardware and software. But Origin’s first crack at Max-Q lets you put a personal touch on your PC's innards, just like the Alienware 15.

The EVO15-S packs Intel’s Core i7-7700HQ processor, Nvidia’s GeForce GTX 1070 Max-Q graphics with 8GB of onboard RAM, and Sound BlasterX Pro-Gaming 360 audio. Beyond that, the finer details are yours to decide, unlike with the first Max-Q systems on the market. You can equip the machine with either a 1080p- or 4K-resolution 15.6-inch IPS display, up to 32GB of DDR4 memory, a M.2 PCI-E SSD with up to 2TB of storage, and a traditional hard drive with up to 4TB of storage. A version that uses a non-Max-Q GTX 1060 will also be available.

Mentioned in this article

The notebook’s hardware flexibility lends itself to pricing flexibility, too. While the locked-in Max-Q laptop configurations available since launch range from $2,399 for an MSI model to $2,899 for the Gigabyte Aorus, the EVO15-S equipped with a GTX 1070 Max-Q starts around $1,792, while the GTX 1060-infused model is a bit cheaper at $1,609. You can obviously spend quite a bit more to cram the system with all the upgrade bells and whistles, but you don’t have to.

The 4.3-pound laptop’s thickness is a testament to how efficient Nvidia’s Max-Q GPUs can be. The older EVO15-S on Origin’s site now, three day’s prior to this article’s publication, includes a GTX 1060 GPU and measures in at 0.69-inch thick. The GTX 1070 Max-Q EVO15-S? Only 0.73-inch thick. That’s remarkably little extra bulk in exchange for a big step up in performance—though our ROG Zephyrus review showed that Nvidia’s Max-Q GPUs aren’t quite as potent as their desktop counterparts.

Origin PC

Origin PC’s EVO15-S with Nvidia’s GTX 1070 Max-Q.

Origin’s a boutique PC builder, and the EVO15-S offers the swanky touches you’d expect from the company, such a backlit keyboard, free lifetime 24/7 phone support based in the U.S., extensive aesthetic customization options (included custom paint and laser-engraving), optional out-of-the-box overclocks and screen calibration, and more. Head to Origin PC’s EVO15-S page for more info.

Mentioned in this article

Meet the new people's champion. The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 delivers more performance than the $1000 Titan X for a fraction of the cost and a fraction of the power.

The story behind the story: Again, don’t necessarily expect full-blown GTX 1070 performance out of Nvidia’s GTX 1070 Max-Q chip. Our experience with the ROG Zephyrus showed the GPU heavily ramped down clock speeds under heavy workloads, and gaming’s a heavy workload. That wasn’t with the same graphics processor—the Asus laptop includes a more potent GTX 1080 Max-Q—but I’d expect to see similar behavior in all Max-Q laptops. Cramming GTX 1070 and GTX 1080 levels of performance into truly portable notebooks requires some sacrifice.

To comment on this article and other PCWorld content, visit our Facebook page or our Twitter feed.